Bridging the gender gap for boys

How all children and young people spend their time outside school hours, as well as within school, can shape and change their lives. The benefits of taking part in out-of-schoolhours learning (oshl) are well documented. Some young people may only discover what they are good at or passionate about outside formal education. A leisure interest, pursued out of school hours, may provide their first real experience of being motivated – a critical factor in achievement. Out-of-school-hours learning Bridging the gender gap for boys Acknowledgements This guide was written by Angela Treadwell and Pam Boyd on behalf of ContinYou Cymru. It was edited by Paddy O’Dea and designed by Paul Mepham. Translated by Dyfrig Selway Published by ContinYou Cymru Copyright © ContinYou 2007 All rights reserved. Except as allowed by law, or where indicated in this publication, no part of this publication may be reproduced in any form or by any means without prior permission from the publisher. 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Registered in England and Wales: 4652378 Registered charity number: 1097596 ContinYou Cardiff First Floor, Anchor Court Keen Road, Cardiff CF24 5JW Tel: 029 2047 8929 Fax:029 2047 8930 Email: info.cardiff@continyou.org.uk London 17 Old Ford Road London E2 9PJ Tel: 020 8709 9900 Fax: 020 8709 9933 Coventry Unit C1, Grovelands Court Grovelands Estate, Longford Road Exhall, Coventry CV7 9NE Tel: 024 7658 8440 Fax: 024 7658 8441 www.continyou.org.uk Contents Introduction ................................................................................. 4 Making the case ........................................................................... 6 Involving the boys themselves ...................................................... 8 Partners and partnerships ............................................................. 9 Planning activities ....................................................................... 13 Vocational oshl activities for boys ............................................... 14 Oshl activity ideas ...................................................................... 15 Evaluation: is it working? ............................................................ 17 Useful websites ........................................................................... 18 Useful resources .......................................................................... 19 Introduction When boys underachieve in education they can feel alienated from society, which makes it more likely that some of them will indulge in anti-social behaviour. Schools and others continue to explore why some boys do not do as well as girls and to seek strategies that will reduce the gender gap in achievement. In recent years in Wales and England, the overall gap between what girls and boys attain has been widening. Girls are doing much better than boys at all stages of their education. In Wales, boys gain fewer GCSEs than elsewhere in the UK (The Well Being of Children in Wales, University of York for Save the Children, 2005). National assessment figures show the widest gender gap at age 14. At this age, boys perform badly, which may be linked to a poor transition from primary to secondary school, which disrupts their learning. Oshl activities can help make transition a more positive stage for all young people. (For good practice examples, read ContinYou Cymru’s publication, From primary to secondary: moving on: out-of-school-hours learning and transition, which can be downloaded from www.continyou.org.uk/primarytosecondary. The Welsh Assembly Government’s vision for children and young people is founded on the principles laid out in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, entitlement to services based on the needs of the child or young person, listening to or acting on the views of children, young people and families, giving the highest priority to those most in need, and a commitment to partnership working between different local organisations as the only way in which these aspirations can be achieved. A strategy for realising these aspirations is set out in these Welsh Assembly government policies: ● Children and Young People: A Framework for Partnership (2000) ● Children and Young People: Rights to Action (2004) ● Extending Entitlement: Supporting Young People in Wales (2000). The subject gap A gender analysis published by the Welsh Assembly Government has revealed that girls continue to perform better than boys in all subjects at all ages, although the gap in maths and science is smaller than in English or Welsh. At Key Stage 1 the biggest decrease in the gap was in Welsh, where it narrowed from 7.7 per cent in 2005 to 5.8 per cent in 2006. At Key Stage 2, the gender gap in 2006 was greatest in Welsh (15.5 per cent) and smallest in maths (3.1 per cent). At Key Stage 3, the gap increased in English, Welsh and Science from 2005 to 2006 but decreased in maths. At Key Stage 4, there was an 11.6 per cent gap between the number of boys and girls gaining five GCSEs at Grades A*–C, a slight decrease on the 12 per cent of 2005. At A and AS level, there was an increase in the gap between boys and girls from 6.2 per cent in 2005 to 9 per cent in 2006. 4 This guide shows how oshl can help raise boys’ attainment by improving their concentration, self-esteem and motivation to learn. It is designed to help schools and local authorities, by working in partnership with others, to make oshl integral to raising boys’ achievement levels and giving them: ● access to a wide range of oshl activities, particularly those that contribute to the improvement of their basic and key skills ● support and encouragement to take part in these activities. To ensure that boys feel encouraged to participate, the guide will also help you devise a plan for oshl provision that will: ● focus on the particular benefits of oshl for underachieving boys ● help you address the barriers to participation that boys may experience ● identify key allies within and outside your local authority, and show how you can make the case for putting oshl at the heart of learning strategies, either to or on behalf of these allies. ‘Pupils under perform because they do not have the skills to succeed. For example, although pupils’ skills are generally improving, the literacy of some less able pupils, mainly boys, is weak. If pupils cannot read or write well, they will not be able to succeed in many other subjects or enjoy activities that can enrich their lives. Many primary schools successfully develop family learning in line with the Basic Skills Strategy for Wales. This work helps parent to improve their own skills in literacy and numeracy, so that they can help their children.’ Annual Report of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education and Training in Wales (2005–2006) A note about transition and thinking skills: Aiming for Excellence in Key Stage 3 To promote raising standards and achievement at Key Stage 3, this guidance was released in October 2002 to support managers and practitioners in schools and local authorities with whole-school responsibilities. It encouraged schools and authorities to build on progress made at Key Stage 2, improve pupils’ learning and focus more effectively on learners. Emphasis was on thinking skills, which help boys explore subjects more deeply and improve their own learning, on problem solving and skill development, and on working with others within school time and during out-of-school-hours learning activities. The report pointed out that primary and secondary schools should work together so that teachers in secondary schools would know how literacy and numeracy are taught in primary schools; and that LEAs and secondary schools should work together to develop Key Stage 3 literacy and numeracy strategies so that teaching and learning in Year 7 and beyond build on pupils’ prior learning and attainment. However, Estyn reported in May 2006 that it was difficult to measure the overall impact of the Aiming for Excellence programme. It said, at that stage, only a few schools had begun working on transition plans to ensure that secondary teachers would know more about their pupils’ learning and standards so they could teach them appropriately. For a copy of the report, search on www.estyn.gov.uk. 5 6 Making the case Having a clear definition of oshl to hand when you approach the people you are trying to convince to support you is useful. Here’s one: oshl, also known as study support, describes the wide variety of informal learning activities that young people voluntarily take part in outside normal school hours and/or during school holiday periods. Out-of-school-hours learning: a code of practice is helpful and can be found at www.continyou.org.uk/welshcode. Convincing your local authority Oshl, as a way of addressing gender inequalities, needs to be on the corporate agendas of local authorities and built into their strategic planning for schools, leisure, youth and other voluntary services. Oshl co-ordinators need to reinforce this message to schools and other partner organisations. The key messages for local authorities are that involving children in oshl can help authorities meet the key outcomes of the Children Act 2004. You need to show them how oshl contributes to children’s personal, social and educational development, including their long-term personal development. The structure of local services and the titles given to different roles that manage them vary from one authority to another. However, ask yourself: ● Who do you need to convince about the importance of oshl opportunities for boys? ● Who needs to ensure that boys have access to oshl opportunities? ● Who needs to be involved in planning, delivering, managing, supporting, monitoring and evaluating oshl opportunities? ● Which policies and strategies does oshl feature in – and in which of these should boys be targeted? ‘… schools are now better suited to girls … ‘ and ‘… boys rebel to be cool whereas girls will listen, do their homework and learn. It’s easier to get girls interested.’ January 2007, Dr Marion Kloep, Professor of Psychology at the University of Glamorgan Children’s University Wrexham Statistical information comparing the participation of boys versus girls with that of out-of-school-hours learning in Wrexham clearly shows that girls are more likely, on the whole, to participate. The most popular activities for boys are activities related to personal health, fitness and safety, science and sports. The least popular are the arts, music and activities that involve social skills. 7 Good points to make Why oshl is important for underachieving boys Positive out-of-school-hours activities are good for all children and young people. By providing stimulation, diversion and enrichment, such activities can help prevent some young people from engaging in risktaking and anti-social behaviour. Oshl also gives boys a chance to try different activities and ways of learning in different places with different people. Oshl activities that appeal most to boys can often re-engage them with more formal learning. Personal outcomes Enjoyment and motivation These are closely linked to the voluntary nature of oshl activities. Young people enjoy them not only because they have chosen to be involved in something that interests them, but also because they are involved with other young people who also want to be there. Many schools have noted that pupils who do not willingly attend school can find the motivation to persevere and succeed at an out-ofschool- hours activity. For example, activities can often be provided outside the school premises and will more likely appeal to those who find attending school challenging for a number of reasons. Self-confidence and self-esteem Current thinking emphasises a strong link between high self-esteem and high achievement. Pupils with high self-esteem are more confident in social situations and in tackling school work. Learning outcomes Oshl offers young people the time to explore and find out more, to build up their knowledge, and to review, reinforce and practise their new skills. Extension clubs that focus on homework and revision for particular subjects have been shown to be highly effective in improving classroom performance. In Getting Results: A Report on the Impact of Study Support Activities in Cardiff Schools*, Dr Adrian Schmit found that regular participation in study support can have a significant impact on pupils’ attainment and achievement. Pupils participating in informal enriching activities did better than expected in their GCSEs, by an average of three and a half grades, or by one more A–C pass. They also had better attendance and improved attitudes to school than those who did not attend additional activities. *This report was commissioned by the Cardiff Council Schools and Lifelong Learning Service and produced with ContinYou Cymru in November 2005. Lunchtime with Old Fossils, Rougemont Independent School, Newport Geologist Richard Thomas, teacher at Rougemont School, spends his lunch-time exploring some of the world’s greatest natural disasters with Year 5 boys. The club is intended to be fun, but also has a serious side, with pupils learning about the effects of climate change and global warming. They learn about the ice age and how the Earth heats up and cools down, exploring different types of creatures and how they have evolved. Dinosaurs are popular with every child and a firm favourite with boys. Regular trips to explore the pebbly Southerndown beach in the Vale of Glamorgan have pupils hunting fossils and seeking out tell-tale signs of dinosaurs. Richard Thomas is fascinated about everything to do with geology and wants his pupils to have the same thirst for knowledge that has stayed with him since he was a child. This club allows pupils to learn through informal, fun activities, while improving their attainment levels in science, geography and basic skills. 8 Improved relationships Oshl activities bring young people into contact with peers, teachers and other adults in an informal environment. This provides great potential for forming networks, friendships and relationships based on shared interests – this can be across age, year, ability and social group. Raised aspirations Oshl activities can provide the opportunity for pupils to engage in activities, and work, with a range of professionals they might not otherwise encounter, such as people involved in the arts. Life skills Oshl has been shown to be effective in developing a range of life skills, including communication, social skills, teamwork, problem solving, taking responsibility and citizenship skills. Involving the boys themselves Everyone has a role to play in supporting, encouraging and helping boys to choose activities in which they can participate. However, boys can be key allies when you are planning oshl activities because they are the people who will benefit from participating in the activities. ● Consider developing a buddying scheme for young people who are unsure about attending an activity for the first time. ● Think about providing additional transport. ● Monitor the participation of boys in order to measure their progress. ● Hold taster sessions or offer a menu of activities to gain their interest. ● Look at reward schemes or incentives as a way to encourage participation. ● Designate a proactive worker to make the initial contact with the targeted boys. ● Involve people who are already working with the boys – their learning mentors, social workers, counsellors. ● Find ways to get their families involved to share activities. ● Keep in regular contact with your local authority oshl co-ordinator. There is information about consultation in Out-of-school-hours learning: a code of practice. Email info.cardiff@continyou.org.uk or phone 029 2047 8929 or download from www.continyou.org.uk/welshcode. Tai Chi – Morriston Comprehensive Attainment levels and achievement of boys have increased through Tai Chi sessions at Morriston Comprehensive School. An information technology technician with a keen personal interest in Tai Chi co-ordinates school lunch-time sessions for boys who are low achievers, on the verge of disaffection, have dyspraxia or would benefit by improving their motor skills or raising their self-esteem. With the growth in the boys’ confidence and knowledge of Tai Chi, two groups are mixed. This enables those who may have been bullied in the playground to form positive social interactions with those who would be likely to have bullied others. Boys with stronger physical ability support those with weaker motor skills or low-level muscular strength. Outcomes of the Tai Chi sessions are extensive: boys have ‘ownership’ of specialist sessions; they have greater respect and confidence; excessive energy and aggression are released; there are improvements in social skills, motor skills, strength, concentration, self-esteem, behaviour and willingness to learn. Disruptive classroom behaviour has diminished. Boys are less vocal and concentrate during lessons. Sessions are used as a tool to encourage disaffected young boys to participate and step back into the formal education system. 9 Partners and partnerships Much oshl activity is provided by schools, but increasingly, other organisations that are developing and delivering activities might be better placed to target under-achieving boys. Developing a partnership approach can greatly benefit everyone involved. More details on effective partnership work are contained in Community Focused Schools: Making it happen: A toolkit and in the Welsh training and resource pack for out-ofschool- hours learning. You can download these from: www.continyou.org.uk/cfstoolkit www.continyou.org.uk/welshtraining. Local authority: senior managers and councillors All the following people and partnerships have the power to influence the direction of policy and allocation of budgets and need to be involved in oshl provision: chief executives of authorities; directors and assistant directors of social services/children and families services and education; lead members for children’s services; and Children and Young People’s Partnerships. It’s important to convince them all of the benefits of oshl if good quality opportunities are to become an integral part of raising achievement among boys. Local authority: out-of-school-hours learning co-ordinators Each local education authority (LEA) has a named person who has a responsibility for oshl and/or Community Focused Schools (CFS) development. Usually, they are responsible for raising the profile of oshl within the authority and for contributing towards the development of a strategy that will sustain and extend oshl provision, raise achievement, and meet targets in both the authority’s education development plan and individual schools’ development (improvement) plans. Phone 029 2047 8929 or email ContinYou Cymru at info.cardiff@ continyou.org.uk for the name and contact details of the designated oshl co-ordinator for your authority. Local authority: Community Focused Schools co-ordinators Community Focused Schools development aims to explore new ways of enabling schools to develop as community resources. A Community Focused School is well placed to play a central role in its community’s life and can provide a base for locally delivered services. This role for schools is particularly important in disadvantaged areas where alternative facilities often do not exist and where local people may be unlikely to take up opportunities outside their immediate areas. As a result, in some areas, one multi-agency team may need to serve a cluster of schools. Developing oshl is a key part of CFS development – and another opportunity to work in partnership to provide targeted activities for boys. For more about Community Focused Schools visit www.continyou.org.uk/cfs. 10 School governors School governors are committed to helping all children reach their potential. They have an influence on schools’ policies, procedures and processes. They also have responsibility for the overall ethos of schools, including family and community involvement. Governors may already be aware of the particular barriers boys can face and, although there is no requirement for schools to have designated governors with special responsibility for boys’ achievement, some schools may choose to take this approach. Learning coaches: 14–19 Learning Pathways Some authorities employ learning coaches to provide a range of support and liaison roles for young people aged 14 to 19. The coaches are instrumental in finding out what young people want, or might want, to do with their time. In making those things happen for young people, learning coaches ensure there are no significant barriers to pursuing activities outside school, or to receiving additional study support. Youth, play and leisure services: statutory and voluntary These services are responsible for a range of activities at sports centres, libraries, museums, galleries, playgrounds and parks, which help young people to develop a range of skills that cannot always be gained in classrooms. Leisure services may be responsible for delivering after-school and holiday, homework and reading clubs. Some services may already run dedicated activities for boys or may be encouraged to do so if there is a clear need. Youth, play or leisure workers are well positioned to engage children in new activities and to encourage them to understand the benefits of participation. Carmarthenshire Youth and Children’s Association (CYCA) Boys can learn a great deal through engaging with older people. Proficient local angling coaches from Maelor Angling Club introduce boys from across the whole of Carmarthenshire to an appreciation of the great outdoors and to the joys of fishing. In addition to learning basic fishing skills, the boys also learn about the aquatic environment. The angling club’s excellent work is getting these youngsters off the streets and engaged in a successful inter-generational learning activity. 11 Other organisations providing activities ● Scouts, cubs, beavers, guides, brownies, rainbows ● Army cadets ● St John Ambulance or Red Cross ● Performing arts, drama and music organisations ● Outdoor activity providers ● Sports clubs – for example, football, rugby, swimming clubs ● Opportunities within local communities (for example, those run by faith groups or community centres) ● Organisations providing activities for children with special needs or disabilities ● Leisure activity providers for activities, such as using a dry ski slope, climbing wall or a paint-balling centre, or learning archery, go-karting. Find out what other organisations offer. In any locality there may be a particular facility or organisation that could be interested in doing something special for boys. Basic Skills Agency Wales: Family Programmes and Keeping Up With The Children (KUWC) The Basic Skills Agency’s Family Programmes run in all local education authorities to help parents improve their own basic skills and to get them back into learning whilst helping their children. Keeping Up With The Children is a Basic Skills Agency workshop that shows parents how their children are taught in English and maths lessons and gives them the confidence to support their children. Visit www.basic-skills-wales.org. Ysgol Glan Morfa in Abergele, Conwy Albeit in a small way, the school caretaker and head cook at Ysgol Glan Morfa are keen to support school staff in helping pupils read more. Through the Basic Skills Agency’s Read a million words campaign, they are helping raise the literacy levels of pupils in both English and Welsh and are helping boys to reaching the million-word milestone. The boys increase their word count in the school kitchens by reading through daily menus. Also, at lunchtime, the caretaker helps pupils, particularly boys, to read signs placed in and around the school, which is improving their literacy skills. No matter how small the contribution, all school staff can encourage and motivate boys outside the formal school day. Forest School Wales Across Wales there are approximately 80 forest school initiatives where pupils of all ages have the chance to improve basic skills in a woodland setting, outside school hours. These activities are particularly useful for boys who lack motivation, or have poor self-esteem, or are on the verge of being disaffected from the education system. Any subject can be incorporated into a woodland setting, allowing young children’s personalities to develop and confidence to grow in ways not possible when they are confined indoors. Swansea Youth Offending Team successfully re-engaged disaffected young boys by using informal forest school woodland learning activities. The boys became confident learners and transferred their improved attitudes to their classroom work. 12 Establishing a partnership This is a key first step and will help you to pool all your information. Deciding who your key allies are will have an impact on how successful you are. There is already a great deal of existing information and knowledge that can help you answer these questions: ● Can you give an overview of the school-based and community-based activities already offered? ● Are there any current authority-wide initiatives? ● What out-of-school facilities can boys attend? ● What activities could be developed to target boys? ● Who could develop these activities? ● What is the current strategy for delivering oshl in the authority? ● Do you have the contact details for school-based oshl co-ordinators across the authority? ● Are there any potential ‘champions’ in the authority who can help take things forward? Forming a steering or advisory group Pooling knowledge saves time. Who you work with will be critical to your plan. Depending upon the structure of services and the designation of roles within the authority, you may want to enlist group members who have an appropriate level of strategic responsibility from: ● youth play, leisure and library services ● social services (children’s services manager) ● community/family education ● voluntary/community providers ● children’s information services ● schools. 13 Planning activities As part of planning, you will need to: audit existing provision; identify what you want to achieve; incorporate planned activities into your school development plan or other organisation plan; agree on how the activities will be run; decide how you will monitor activities; and agree on a process for evaluating your activities. What? ● Do you provide a wide range of activities from which under-achieving boys can benefit? ● Do you already target boys within existing activities, or when you are providing new activities? ● Have you consulted with boys to explore what activities most interest them? ● Have you taken into account the individual and particular needs of boys? ● Have you thought about what works best: supporting boys in mainstream provision, or providing dedicated provision? ● Have you researched what makes a difference to young boys’ participation and engagement in oshl? Who? ● Who needs to be involved in the planning, delivery, management and monitoring of oshl for boys? ● Have you asked the boys themselves? ● Do you have a process for consulting with those who should be involved in ensuring boys have access to oshl? ● Have you consulted with people who need to be involved in supporting young people in oshl opportunities? Have you consulted boys’ families? Where? ● Have you thought about where different oshl activities take place? ● What are the pros and cons of different locations? ● What are the individual implications of different locations for boys, particularly looked-after boys or boys in care – for example, transport? How? ● Do you know how oshl can be funded? ● How will you evaluate your oshl activities for boys? ● How will you sustain your activities? When? ● Have you explored when most oshl activities that are best suited to boys happen? ● What, if any, are the implications for boys’ participation? There is guidance on the effective planning of activities in Out-of-schoolhours learning: a code of practice and the Community Focused Schools toolkit. Email info.cardiff@continyou.org.uk or phone 029 2047 8929. You can also download these publications from www.continyou.org.uk/ welshcode and www.continyou.org.uk/cfstoolkit. 14 Vocational oshl activities for boys A study by the National Research and Development Centre found that, where literacy was embedded rather than added onto Level 1 and 2 vocational courses, 93 per cent of learners gained key skills and qualifications compared with 63 per cent on courses where literacy was not built in. The Basic Skills Agency advocates giving early attention to matching the curriculum to 14–19 year old learners’ needs, both inside and outside the school day, and for literacy and numeracy to be integrated into vocational studies, rather than bolted on. Vocational oshl activities offer innovative ways to engage ‘hard-to-reach’ boys with poor key skills and low motivation for learning. Examples are: ● Motor vehicle workshops can help 14 year olds to understand fractions by piling up tyres. ● In construction, boys learn about volume by seeing what a cubic metre of sand looks like. ● Under 16s study art design and media and improve their English without knowing it, as basic skills can be built into drawing and video-making. ● A game based on the TV show ‘Blockbusters’ helps students with words they will encounter in relation to career options. ● Engineering sessions engage disaffected youngsters by building a go-cart or hovercraft and a visit to a theme park consolidates learning about hydraulics. Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) – Construction Skills Wales As the construction industry booms across Wales, the CITB captures and maintains the enthusiasm of young people, mainly boys, through participation in after-school activities and Saturday workshop sessions. Young people are improving their basic skills while gaining insight into the wide variety of career options within the construction industry. Activities test students’ abilities to solve problems and undertake practical craft-related activities within the construction industry. CITB focuses on regeneration projects that interest pupils: sustainable eco buildings, designing schools for the future, the Olympics, heritage and restoration. Find out more at wales.office@citb.co.uk. Oshl activity ideas Think about activities that boys may not normally have access to, or may not think of as ‘cool’ if they are less traditional. Boys often shy away from dance – particularly ballet or contemporary dance (definitely not cool, unless you’re a famous footballer!). Many boys of all ages, however, do enjoy participating in break and street dancing and many dance schools of this kind throughout Wales particularly target boys to participate. animal Pentrehafod School Street Dance classes mainly attracted girls. To engage boys in dance they set up a boys-only street dance after-school club. Take-up was phenomenal and boys enjoyed learning and improving their street and break dance skills. The Underdogs is a voluntary youth group, which was set up in 1992 in Cardiff when the St Mellon’s estate was heading for trouble and boys living there had nothing to do, nowhere to go and were on a slippery slope. 4dee and Jaffa had been into music for a long time and they were able to put together a group specialising in hip hop culture. The group’s main aim was to have fun while learning – and to be famous. Its numerous activities included rapping, street and break dancing, singing, music production, graphic design, information technology and DJ skills. Participating in these activities has prevented boredom among the boys, which can lead to crime and drug abuse. The dance has developed the boys’ self-confidence and ability to co-operate, and gives them a sense of belonging. Being in the group has engaged the boys in learning outside the school day, and has also enabled them to express their personal thoughts and feelings without causing offence. Taking part in performances and local competitions through any aspect of these activities has given each individual boy the chance to be proud of his personal contribution. 15 16 Skills Force in Porth Community School, Rhondda Skills-based sessions are proving popular with boys at Porth Community School. Pupils have gained the equivalent of an extra 3.5 to 4 GCSEs with an award through Skills Force. Skills Force is a nationally recognised scheme where pupils are instructed by former Armed Forces personnel. Boys focus on acquiring, learning and using work and social skills. Most of the boys who take part in the programme either behave badly in school, don’t turn up for school or are disaffected. This programme turns them round. Boys enjoy learning the skills that relate to long-term job opportunities. They can see the point of qualifications through the practical learning sessions and can include their experiences in CVs and job applications. The sessions motivate them and parents are thrilled with the outcomes. School staff experience less challenging behaviour and have seen a major turnaround in the attitudes of the most disruptive pupils. The boys’ sense of achievement is reflected in all areas of their schooling. Throughout the two-year programme they show signs of maturity with improved behaviour. archaeology art, craft board games book clubs calligraphy ceramics circus skills cookery dance – street, break design/technology DJ skills/music drama, film, poetry Duke of Edinburgh Award environment club fashion first aid gardening/growing/allotments/ Young Farmers glass painting jewellery/toy making languages leadership activities/peer mentoring/buddying looking after animals martial arts motorbike/cycle maintenance newsletter/newspaper outdoor activities, climbing, abseiling PE, sport, fitness personal safety philosophy photography pre-driving skills referee/coach training roller blading rowing/sailing/swimming skate boarding sports for the non-expert steel band table tennis Tai Chi themed activities (for example, Australian week) trail/mountain biking video/websites, pod casting yoga Young Enterprise Other ideas you or the boys may not have thought of… 17 Evaluation: is it working? You will be able to make a much more powerful case if you can provide evidence that the oshl activities are achieving what they intended. Evidence can be gathered through monitoring and evaluation. Monitoring and evaluating are important to see whether: ● what you are doing is having an impact ● you want to change what you are doing ● there are any unintended outcomes. There are three things that you can evaluate: ● outputs – immediate, tangible and quantifiable results or products (for example, a directory of oshl activities) ● outcomes – short-term changes that result from the activities (for example, a change in skills, attitudes, knowledge or behaviour) ● impacts – longer-term, more permanent change, resulting from the outputs or outcomes. When developing, and later, evaluating your plan, it can be helpful to think about these questions: ● What, overall, are we trying to achieve? ● What evidence will show us that we have achieved this? ● Are there any barriers over which we have no control? ● What are the specific objectives of the activity? ● Who are the intended beneficiaries? ● How will we know if they have benefited? ● Who are our key allies? ● Have they fulfilled their responsibilities? ● Were they the most appropriate partners? ● Outcomes: How do we know they are the result of our work? Are there other possible causes? ● Impact: How will we identify impact? How sustainable is the impact? All of the key allies can have a role to play in monitoring success and keeping oshl high on the agenda by talking with boys about activities in which they want to take part. Again, there is more guidance in ContinYou’s Out-of-school-hours learning: a code of practice (www.continyou.org.uk/welshcode). 18 Estyn inspection and oshl The new inspection arrangements will focus on the key outcomes for all children and the following will be relevant to this area of work: ● the proportion of young people who engage in council-provided youth activities and informal learning opportunities ● parents and carers supporting children to enjoy and achieve ● school development planning, targeting the needs of potentially underachieving groups ● recreational and voluntary learning opportunities, reflecting the needs of socially excluded groups. Find out more at www.estyn.gov.uk. Useful websites www.basic-skills.co.uk The Basic Skills Agency publishes materials in both English and Welsh and offers a wide selection of printed and electronic resources. Wales Hotline: 0845 602 1654 Email: walesenquiries@basic-skills.co.uk www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2004/20040031.htm The Children Act 2004 www.citb.org.uk Construction Skills Wales (CITB) www.cycaonline.org The Carmarthenshire Youth and Children’s Association (CYCA) has many examples of clubs. www.estyn.gov.uk Read the Annual Report of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education and Training in Wales 2005/6. www.funkydragon.org Funky Dragon has been designed by and for children and young people to involve them more directly in the government of their country. www.sports-council-wales.org.uk The Sports Council for Wales works with sport at all levels in Wales. It supports the development of active recreation through intervention programmes and works closely with other agencies such as the Countryside Council for Wales and Forestry Commission on outdoor activities. Dragon Sport is a Sports Council for Wales’s initiative funded by the National Lottery, and offers 7–11 year olds fun and enjoyable sporting opportunities. www.literacytrust.org.uk Use the National Literacy Trust’s search engine for articles on gender and literacy. www.nya.org.uk Visit the National Youth Agency for information about Youth Work Week in November 2007 – the theme: All Different, All Equal. 19 www.skillforce.org Skill Force is sponsored by the Ministry of Defence and the Department for Education and Skills. It works with 40 teams in Wales, Scotland and England. An evaluation of the Skill Force programme has shown that boys who participate in it show less likelihood of being excluded, have improved behaviour both inside and outside school and have fewer detentions. www.tes.co.uk Read the article Gender gap by Nicholas Pyke, published in March 2004. www.unicef.org/crc/ The Convention on the Rights of the Child is the international instrument that sets out all children’s basic civil, cultural, economic, political and social rights in 54 articles plus two Optional Protocols. National governments, by ratifying or acceding to this Convention, agree to be accountable before the international community for their commitment. www.wales.gov.uk Search on the National Assembly for Wales website for: Children and Young People: Rights to Action – Stronger Partnership for Better Outcomes: guidance circular 35/2006 (August 2006) Learning Country, Learning Pathways 14–19 Boys underperforming at school – Statistical Bulletin 38/2000. www.wcva.org.uk/main/dsp_home.cfm The Wales Council for Voluntary Action is the umbrella organisation for voluntary organisations across the whole of Wales. Useful resources ContinYou Funded by the Welsh Assembly Government and published by ContinYou, the following oshl publications are an example of those available from the ContinYou website at www.continyou.org.uk and can be adapted for use in developing oshl activities for boys – follow the links to the Wales section. Please note that resources with an English focus may also be relevant to Wales. Out-of-school-hours learning: a code of practice A training and resource pack for out-of-school-hours-learning complements the code of practice. Written for both teaching and non-teaching staff, it is ideal for oshl providers who are planning a training programme. From primary to secondary: moving on: out-of-school-hours learning and transition helps to set up oshl programmes supporting transition from primary to secondary school. Take your Partners in Caerphilly is an introductory toolkit for anyone wishing to work in partnership to deliver effective out-of-school-hours learning (oshl). Sum it! Maths clubs in Wales: This guide is published for schools in Wales as a bilingual supplement to ContinYou’s Sum-it! resource pack, which has been published for schools in England. This is how we do it! A guide for reading clubs helps set up out-of-schoolhours reading programmes.